Bobbin winder for sewing machines



G. B- HIRSCH ET AL BOBBIN WINDER FOR SEWING. MACHINES April 8, 1952 2 SHEETS-SHEET 1 Filed Oct. 17, 1946 rtl u mil"! l INVENTORS Gauge 8 Hir-rch Qrence P. fiacZfZ/n A ATTORNEYS April 1952 G. B. HlRscH ETA]: 2,

' BOBBIN WINDER FOR SEWING MACHINES I' iled Oct. 17, 1946" ATTORNEYS iiient may be omitted, and it an opening has been eeononii'cal 'inqonstrut'i'on, and reliable in onattachment.

Patented Apr. 8, 1 952 BGBEIN WJ'IND'ER FOR SEWING MACHINES Geofge B. 'Hiiso'h Pi'ovidenc'e, R. 1;; ma Clezre'iic R. Baeklin; North, N. Y., assignors' to Willeox & Gibbs Sewing Machine Company; New York, N. Y.; a corporation of New York Animation Ootober 17, 1946, serial No; 703,760

1 Claims.- (Cl; 112 -218) This ihtentioh feletes to sewing mathnies; end more ii-ai tionlarly to bobbin-winding rheolia'ni'sihs b of sewing machines. v Fig. 5 i sja fragmentary horizontal otioriteiken An object of the invention is to improvetne onth lime-4 of Fig. 1; the ports being in bobbin-winding meblianisin die, sewing machine. 5- the orieratit position, and a bobbin eing This is eco6fnialishedih part by the provision of rhouhtedin the attachment in readihess to rewlnding mechanism in the'lfo'rin of an elttaich ceive thread. v I intent whih withoutelteieltion is capable of being Fig, e view like Fig.5; but with 'tiyepeits ictoiy ii stelled conveniently in any-or 9 11min"- in inoperative position, the bobbin having been Eei' 6f difie'ie'nt looaitio'ns' onthe; overqerm or on 10 completing wound with thread. r n ether conveniently looatd parts of the sewing V Fig. 7 is a Vertical semen tat-ken on the line nTi-afn'me; Thus the individual re uirements of T n of Fi .5,- and I, 4 t d-iff eie'iit customers feg' erdin'gthells and/or loco- Fig, 8 is a View like Fig; *7, but showing the eori of the bob in-winding device may e easily automatic lettch mechanism of the avie Being economically" rfit, Where a eustomer does v1-5 operated by building up of the thread on the noteesire to have a; bobbin winner, the aitta'ehbobbin,- thereby to automatically diseo'nneet the device and render it inoperative. iiidiiiiied for it on the o'vera'irhi orel'sewhere; this The sewing machine illnstrated in Fig. 1 cammy be coveted with 9: plete sucn as" an orn'epri a; post It hating an overarm H and seeihentel name plate. If at any later time the ing head [2, the latter moimting the uslra'lneedle tm'toiiief desires to ihstailltt bobbin winder} this ["3 and presser foot l4, and the post being Chib Vexeasily done by merelyiemoving' the ried on a. base or bed [5. entto plate and securing in'place the bobbin In ac co'rdan'ee with the invention a; novel find. wind r';wh'ieh is supplied as a separette unit. The impl'oved bobbin-winding attachment ['61 is .prd-

in operatin position but with a totem emitted for the sake of clarity of illustration;

ettt oh g ofthe device ,ce hflhe'elcoomplished by '25 Vi'ded fors'ecurement to the ovrarm" H of the simp j means provided for'the purpose; without machine; the said a'ttaohment being in the form of e; unitary device shaped like a; cartridge: j's shown in Fig. 2; and being so orgatnized .thetwithout alterationit can" be falctbry insteiled in of a number of different locations," oronlitted "erg-p 5 an ti es; entirely from the machine and quickly and con",-

Another feature of theinvention is the pro veniently installed at a later time;.a11 td Sui't vigidh f 5 mz mding attachment in the the individualrequirements of difflrnt Eusfoi mfof a cartridge which can be conveniently torn'ers'; e A j mounted'in a simple aperture; such" as a: circular Accordingly, as shown Figs: 4"; 5' and 6;;vth'e i 1 driving and other connections being made. A fea'tnre'of the' intention is the provision of a'bobbin winding attachment which is simple and bore, in 1-well oi the machine; overarm H is provided with at cylindrioi' bore A still 'iurth'er feature or therinventionis' the l1,- end with a; tubular .boss l8 enoircling the bore provision of a cartridge type' bobbin winder which and extending inwardly toward the needleeper- TS mi-nutomatio inoperation, and which is ating shaft J9 ofthemafchi'ne;thesetid possyem easily andquickly loaded with ansempty bobbin, sibling; the, bore Helso' to be extended inwardly and unloaded; after the bobbin has been fully 40 from; the ii ont well 216 of the a-rm so as to have un with th d- 7 v i. we a fiei l zsubstan' ia l ths; i

Otherfeetures and-advantages willrhereinetter bohbin winding oe tridge J8 oqmpgis esg e l eel bod A eel in t ll 9.

w henables it to closely fit in th mineese m eey esidltewlnssa M i t H M Q. Figure 1 is a; front elevation of e. se; r g mfa 45 oye 'arn The ihne'l end th liod' thew he is: the im r d b bb1 wj, sfi e l fi iui t t Qm mne ed e? t''ehihefit nie em'dccqiaepcew nithem litiop. boss 13' when thei cart age is m v Fig Zxs aihxfsp ev'iw ofthebobhih wiridoverein li es shownfin F 4 attee ment oer se. k set cre ze s roilif d m th bss' la Fig. 3 is e rear elevetioh of 'tliebobbifi-vilhding gage inent 'th' Lax o'onifcatl 1jece'ss' y i; the a m and secure it againstintid ieftent as:

shoulders 26, and 21. Within the bore 25 a sleeve 28 is mounted for axial movement, the sleeve having at one end a peripheral flange 29 engaging the part of the bore 25 of largest diameter, having a reduced portion 38 engaging the smallest part of the bore 25, and having a portion 3| engaging the part of the bore 25 which extends between the shoulders 28 and 21.

The sleeve 28 is prevented'from turning in the body 2| by a pin 32 anchored in the sleeve and projecting in to a slot 33 of the body, as shown in Figs. and 6. Within the sleeve 28 a bearing bushing 34 is press-fitted, the front end of the bushing being flush with the bottom of a central recess 35 in the sleeve, and the back end of the bushing terminating just short of the back end of the sleeve. Inside the bushing 34 a spindle 38 is rotatably carried, the said spindle having a bore 31 extending for most of its length and having a peripheral flange 38 at its back end, adapted to engage the back end of the bearing bushing 34.

The spindle 36 carries a flat friction wheel 39, the latter being adapted to float with respect to the spindle between a retracted inoperative .position as shown in Fig. 6, and a partially extended operative position shown in Fig. 5. To accomplish this floating mounting, the friction wheel 39 has a shank 48 axially slidable in the bore 31 of the spindle, and the latter has slots 4| diametrically opposite each other for slidably receiving a drive pin 42 which is anchored in the shank 40 of the friction wheel. The said shank 40 is also bored to accommodate a helical compression spring 43 one end of which engages the drive pin 42, the other end engaging the inner end wall of the bore 31 in the spindle. The spring 43 tends to hold the shank 40 and friction wheel 39 in the position of Fig. 5, which is termed a rearwardly extended position, relative to the spindle 38, since it projects the maximum allowable distance from the spindle.

The front end 44 of the spindle 36 is of reduced diameter and is adapted to mount a bobbin 45, the said end having cross cuts to enable it to yield and become slightly smaller in overall diameter so as to frictionally seize the bobbin 45 and hold it against relative turning. Any

suitable means for holding the spindle 36 against .axial movement in the bushing 34 may be provided, such as the split retainer ring 45 shown in Figs. 5 and 6.

The friction wheel 39 is adapted to receive power from the needle-operating shaft I9 of the machine, preferably through the intermediary of a resilient annulus 41 carried by the shaft, for the purpose of driving the spindle 38 and the bobbin 45 mounted thereon. The said annulus is engageable with the face of the wheel 39 when the latter is shifted axially inward from the position of Fig. 6 to the operative position of Fig. 5 and during the time that the wheel is maintained in this shifted position. To hold the wheel 39 in the said operative or shifted position a latch 48 is provided, carried by and keyed to a shaft '49 which passes longitudinally through'the body -to bias the latch 48 in a clockwise direction as viewed in Figs. 7 and 8. The latch 48 has a straight portion 5| engageable with both the outer periphery 52 and the front face 53 of the flange 29 on the sleeve 28. When the latch 48 in engagement with the front face 53 of the flange, which is the locking position as shown in Figs. 5 and 7, the sleeve 28 is held in a predetermined axial position in the body 2| wherein the friction wheel 38 is maintained against the driving washer 41. The wheel 39 is yieldably held under pressure against the washer 41 by the action of the compression spring 43, which is compressed to a degree as determined by the extent of movement of the sleeve 28 and the engagement of the wheel and washer.

For the locking position of the latch 48 an offset portion 54 thereof extends between the flanges of the bobbin 45, the said portion also projecting at its end 55 beyond the periphery of the body 2| so that the latch may be manually operated when necessary. To provide clearance for the ofiset portion 54 of the latch 48 the flange 29 of the sleeve 28 is provided with an arcuate cut 28a, as shown in Fig. 8. By this organization, as thread 56 is wound on the bobbin 45 the thread will build up to a large diameter as shown in Figs. 6 and 8 and in so doing will engage the offset portion 54 of the latch 48 and shift the latch counterclockwise against the action of the latch spring 50. As a result of this movement, the latch will occupy the position shown by the broken lines X in Fig. 8, and the portion 5| of the latch will become engaged with a camming chamfer 51 on the flange 29, whereupon any pressure on the sleeve 28 tending to shift it axially forward will cause the latch to be automatically cast aside. To provide such pressure, a compression spring 58 is located to encircle the sleeve 28 and engage a shoulder 59 thereof, Figs. 5 and 6, the other end of the spring engaging the shoulder 26 in the body 2|.

The spring 58 is aided by the spring 43 in tending to move the sleeve 28 axially forward,

and the combined action of the said springs is such that when the increased thread diameter on the spool 45 shifts the latch 48 into engagement with the chamfer 51, the latch will be immediately quickly cast aside to the position of Figs. 6 and 8, and the sleeve 28 will be snapped forward until stopped by engagement of the friction wheel 39 with the back surface 22 of the .body 2|, such engagement acting as a brake.

This movement will of course disengage the friction wheel 39 from the driving annulus 41, and therefore the bobbin will promptly cease to turn, after having been fully wound with thread.

Where only a partially wound bobbin is desired, or where the thread supply. runs out before the bobbin is fully wound, the finger piece 55 is operated to release the bobbin winder manually from the driving shaft, whereupon the bobbi'n may be readily removed.

The front end of the body 2| is provided with a formed sheet metal cover 68 having the shape of a shallow cup, the said cover being press-fitted against a shoulder 6| of the body as shown.

The cover 60 has an opening 62 to provide clearance for the latch 48, and has a second opening 63 to admit the bobbin 45, and to admit thread to the latter.

As shown in Fig. 1, the thread 58 may be fed to the bobbin-winding cartridge I8 from the right thereof, being supplied from any suitable locasteam such as shown by the broken lines '64 in Fig. .5. This position is on the opposite side of the shaft 36, and therefore for a given rotation of the needle-operating shaft l9, 9, reverse rotation of the friction wheel 39 and spindle 36 is'had.

Referring to Fig. 3, the face of the friction wheel 39 along an annular peripheral zone is provided with straight-line knurling 6-5 to provide better traction and eliminate slippage between the friction wheel and the driving annulus, and preferably the latter 'is recessed in the shaft i9, as shown by the broken line 66 in Fig. 4, to correctly position it and prevent dislodgment.

It will be understood that when the fully wound bobbin 45 is projectingfrom the cover 60 of the cartridge, as shown in Fig. 6, it may be readily grasped and removed from the spindle 36 by merely pulling it therefrom.

The procedure for mounting a bobbin 45 on the slotted end of the spindle 3B is as follows: The bobbin is applied to the slotted end and forced over the latter by pushing with the thumb, inthe same manner that a push button is depressed. During this operation the spindle 36 and the sleeve 30 will shift axially inward thereby engaging the friction wheel 39 with the driving annulus 41. The yielding movement of the spindle will halt when the rear surface of the flange 29 on the sleeve 30 engages the shoulder 21 of the body 2i, thereby enabling the bobbin to be finally forced fully on the end of the spindle against a positioning shoulder 61 thereon. Before letting go of the bobbin the latch 48 will snap into its latching or locking position under the action of the coil spring 50, this position being shown in Figure 5. The attachment is now in the operative position, ready for winding thethread 56 on 'Thus,oil which is deposited in the cut 68 will'be conducted through to the sleeve 2-8 and shaft 36 to lubricate the same.

By the provision of the bobbin-winding cartridge 1 6 it is possible to economically and conveniently meet the various requirements of different customers with respect to bobbin winders.

For example, the cartridge b6 may be mounted at any of a number of different places on the machine. such as on the machine overarm H or other location adjacent a driven shaft, by merely drilling the machine to receive the body 2|, and locating the latter so as to enable the friction wheel 39 to engage the driving annulus 41. This drilling and locating of the attachment may be easily done while the machine is at the factory.

Or, if the customer does not desire a bobbin winder at the time of purchase of" the machine, but might wish to add a winderat a laterdate, the mach-inemay be supplied without the winder, and the opening or bore in the machine covered with a suitable cover plate. Then at any subsequent time the bobbin-winding unit may be purchased by the customer and installed in the opening provided by first removing the cover plate, this being" accomplished all without the use of special tools or machiningoperations.

The position-of the friction wheel'tt shown Fig. 5 is termed an extended operative position, since it projects from the body '2! andengages the driving annulus 41 for operation thereby. Likewise, the position of the wheel 39 shown-in Fig. 6 is termed a retracted inoperative position. since it does not project from the body 2! and, being disengagedfrom the annulus 47, is not'be ingo'perated.

Variations and modifications may be made within the scope "of this invention and portions of the improvements maybe used without others.

We-claim:

1. In asewing machine. a frame part having a power-operated member, andhaving an open ing located adjacent the member; a unitary bob bin winding attachment comprising a bodypositioned and secured within the opening of the frame part; mounting means slidably carried within the body and "having means thereon rotatably mounting a bobbin; a drive mechanism connected with the bobbin-mounting means and rendered operative upon sliding'of the mounting means in response to axial pressure on the bobbin, the said mechanism including a member having a surface and driven from the power-operated member; and yieldable traction means be tween the said surface and the power-operated member.

2. In a sewing machine, a horizontal overarm having a needle-operating shaft, and havingan opening located laterally of the shaft; a unitary bobbin-winding attachment comprising a body positioned and secured within the'opening of the horizontal over-arm; mounting means slidably carried within the body and having means thereon rotatablymounting a bobbin; a drive mechanism connected with the bobbin-mounting means and rendered operative upon Sliding of the mounting means in response to axial pressure on the bobbin, the said mechanism including a memher having an annular surface and driven from the needle-operating shaft; and yieldable traction. means between the said annular surface .and the needle-operating shaft.

3. A. unitary bobbin-winding attachment for a sewing machine, comprising a housing for securement to a frame part of the machine; a spindle slidably mounted in the housing for mounting .a bobbin, the said housing being cut away adjacent one end of the spindle to admit the bobbin, and to; admit thread to the latter; friction-drive means for engagement with a power-operated shaft of themaehine, the said means beingcon- .nected with the spindle and, being movable 'between a retracted, inoperative position, and. an

extended operative position projecting from .the housing; andv manually operable, releasable means for holding. the drive means in extended position. i y

4. A unitary bobbin-winding attachment for-1a sewing machine, comprising a housing for securement in an. opening of a frame part of the machine; a spindle sli'dably mounted in theh'ousing for mounting a bobbin, the said housing being cutaway adjacent the-spindle to admit the bobbin, and to admit thread to the latter; frictiondrive means for engagement with a power oper ated shaft of the machine, the said meansleeing connected with the spindle: and being movable between a retracted, inoperative position, and: an extended operative position projecting fromcthe housing; resilien-tmeans for movingthe" drive means to, and: for yieldably holding it; in; re.-

tracted position; and manually operable, releasable means for holding the drive means in operative position.

5. A unitary bobbin-winding attachment for a sewing machine, comprising a housing for securement to a frame part of the machine; a spindle in the housing for mounting a bobbin, the said spindle being axially movable between an operating position wherein the bobbin is substantially wholly within the housing and a non-operating position wherein the bobbin is partially projecting from the housing, the latter being cut away adjacent one end of the spindle to admit the bobbin and to admit thread thereto; a drive mechanism for engagement with a power-operated shaft of the machine, the said mechanism being connected with the spindle and being axially movable therewith so as to project from the housing in shaft-engaging, operating position when the bobbin is wholly within the housing; resilient means for moving the spindle and drive mechanism to, and for yieldably holding the same in the non-operating positions; and a latch for holding the spindle and drive mechanism in the operating positions.

6. A unitary bobbin-winding attachment for a sewing machine, comprising a housing for securement to a frame part of the machine; a spindle in the housing for mounting a bobbin, the said spindle being axially movable to an operating position wherein the bobbin is substantially wholly within the housing by pressure on the bobbin from a non-operating position wherein the bobbin is partially projecting from the housing, the latter being cut away adjacent one end of the spindle to admit the bobbin and to admit thread thereto; a drive mechanism for engagement with a power-operated shaft of the machine, the said mechanism having a floating driving connection with the spindle and also being axially movable therewith so as to project from the housing in shaft-engaging, operating position when the bobbin is wholly within the housing; resilient means for moving the spindle and drive mechanism to, and for yieldably holding the same in the nonoperating positions; and a latch for holding the spindle and drive mechanism in the operating positions, the said latch being operable to automatically release the spindle and drive mechanism to non-operating position in response to thread building up to a predetermined diameter on the bobbin.

'7. A unitary bobbin-winding attachment for a sewing machine, comprising a housing having means for securing it to a frame part of the machine; a non-rotatable sleeve axially movable in the housing; a spindle rotatable in the sleeve for mounting a bobbin, the said housing being cut away adjacent one end of the spindle to admit the bobbin and to admit thread to the latter; a drive shaft connected with the spindle and ax- .ially movable to and from an extended position with respect thereto; charged elastic means tending to hold the drive shaft in and return it to extended position; a friction wheel on the drive shaft, engageable with a power-operated shaft of the machine under pressure supplied by the elastic means when the said sleeve is in a predetermined axial position in the housing; a latch ensageable with the sleeve for holding the latter in the said predetermined axial position, the said latch being automatically released in response to thread building up on the bobbin; and cha elastic means moving the sleeve out of the said predetermined position upon release of the latch,

the said friction wheel being thereby moved so as to separate it from the power-operated shaft.

8. A unitary bobbin-winding attachment for a sewing machine, comprising a housing having means for securing it to a, frame part of the machine; a non-rotatable sleeve axially movable in the housing; a spindle rotatable in the sleeve for mounting a bobbin, the said housing being cut away adjacent one end of the spindle to admit the bobbin and to admit thread to the latter; a drive shaft connected with the spindle and axially movable to and from an extended position with respect thereto; charged elastic means tending to hold the drive shaft in and return it to extended position; a friction wheel on the drive shaft, engageable with a power-operated shaft of the machine under pressure supplied by the elastic means when the said sleeve is in a predetermined axial position in the housing; a latch engageable with the sleeve for holding the latter in the said predetermined axial position, the bobbin being contained substantially wholly within the housing when the sleeve is latched, and the said latch being automatically released in response to thread building up on the bobbin; and charged elastic means moving the sleeve out of the said predetermined position upon release of the latch, the said friction wheel being thereby moved so as to separate it from the power-operated shaft, and the bobbin being projected from the housing as a consequence of the said movement.

9. A unitary bobbin-winding attachment for a sewing machine, comprising a cylindrical housing having means for securing it in a bore in a frame part of the machine; a non-rotatable sleeve axially movable in the housing in parallelism with the axis of the latter; a spindle extending through and rotatable in the sleeve for mounting a bobbin, the said housing being cut away adjacent one end of the spindle to admit the bobbin and to admit thread to the latter; a drive shaft connected to operate the spindle and axially movable to and from an extended position with respect thereto; a spring tending to hold the drive shaft in and return it to extended position; a friction wheel on the drive shaft, engageable with a power-operated shaft of the machine under pressure supplied by the spring when the said sleeve is in a. predetermined axial position in the housing; a springcharged latch engageable with the sleeve for holding the latter in the said predetermined axial position, the said latch being automatically released in response to thread building up on the bobbin; and a spring moving the sleeve out of the said predetermined position upon release of the latch, the said friction wheel being thereby moved so as to separate it from the power-operated shaft, and the latch by engagement with the said sleeve being held in releasing position.

10. A unitary bobbin-winding attachment for a sewing machine, comprising a cylindrical housing having means for securing it in a bore in a frame part of the machine; a non-rotatable sleeve axially movable in the housing in parallelism with the axis of the latter; a spindle extending through and rotatable in the sleeve for mounting a bobbin, the said housing being cut away adjacent one end of the spindle to admit the bobbin and to admit thread to the latter; a drive shaft passing axially through the spindle and having a pin-andlslot driving connection therewith, the shaft being axially movable in the spindle to and from an extended position with respect thereto; charged elastic means tending to hold the drive shaft in and return it to extended position; a

9 friction wheel on the drive shaft, engageable with a power-operated shaft of the machine under pressure supplied by the elastic means when the said sleeve is in a predetermined axial position in the housing; a latch engageable with the sleeve for holding the latter in the said predetermined axial position, the said latch being automatically released in response to thread building up on the bobbin; and charged elastic means moving the sleeve out of the said predetermined position upon 10 REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Colegrove et al. Oct. 6, 1936 

